Cushion for billiard or pool tables.



MTE@ @raras rar fr onirica.

ifioisfroit L. ADLER, or NEW YORK, NQY.

' USHION FOR BILLIARD OR POOL TABLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Nev. s, isis.

Application filed Ju1y 26. 1913. Serial No. 781,308.

.invention are to iniprove the accuracy and speedof -such cushions, so that the same will be faster and nioresaccurate than those now in use.

To the accoinplishinent of the above ob-i jects and to such others as may hereinafter appear the invention comprises, a |cushion having' a relatively flat working face, providedwith a fla-t reinforcing strip behind the working face of the cushion, said flat reinforcing strip being arranged to be acted ,upon by two other reinforcing strips placed behind the saine.

Referring to the drawings: Figure l .shows a vertical section of so much of a bilterial such as rubber suitable for the purposes of a lbillard cushion, which is secured to the wooden lining' B of the cushion-rail C. The cushioirrail is provided with. a top-rail D and is secured to the bed E of the table in the usual manner. The cushion strip A and ilie lining B are usually 'covered with suitable cloth one end of which .istacked to the bottoni of the lining` B and the other end held in place by the retaining strip l?, about which the end of the cloth is wrapped. The bed of the table is also usually covered with suit-able. cloth stretched over its topusurface.

ln the present instance the cushion strip A, as shown, is triangular in cross section and provided with a reli'itively flat working face G, which is slightly inclined inward 'from its upper edge, a little oblique to a vertical plane that is located, relatively to the table-bed, so that the ball first contacts,y

at a point Abelow the top of the working face and above the level of the ball center. lVhen the ball is played against the working face, niade as just described, the initial point of contact, while above the level in which lies the center of the ball, is considerably below the top edge of the working face, and when the surface of the ball coines into forcible contact with the whole extent of said face, the cushion face will react on the ball a-t-a. point considerably below the center, thus tending to repel the yball in substantially a. horizontal direction.

A cushion suoli as described with a flat working face is very effective in taking the twist imparted to the ball, which is known as English, and will permit of the use of balls that vary in size. l

In order to Iget greater resiliency to a cushion of this flat working face type, it has been found desirable to arrange, in the rear of the working` face, a series of reinforcing,r strips, these strips being arranged in such a ina-nner that the increased resiliency given to the ball, by the action of the strips, will no-t affect'tlie angles of incidence and relie-ction of the path of the ball when driven into the cushion.

ln the,present instance the reinforcing` strips are three in number andare preferably inade of thin flat metal ribbons designated by the letters K L and M. These flat ribbons or reinforcing` strips are, in the present instance, approximately of the saine width as the working face G of the cushion, in which-they are embedded, it being'custoiiiary to cover the strips with canvas or other suitable material, to hold the saine in place and prevent the cutting of the cushion.

The reinforcingr or operating strip K is,

-in the pi'esentjnstance, preferably placed so that it will be substantially vertical to the plane of the bed of the table,"the lower edge, as shown, ettendinc` a little below the'lowei edgeV of the working face G. the face of the strip K being spaced away from the w( *ng face, in the present instance, approXin'. Iely half its width, or about an eighth of an inch.

The action of the flat operating strip lef is very eective when the hallis driven with ordinary speed against the cushion, the fiat working face k(EIloermfitting)L the placing lof the strip K, as shown, so t at' the ball will be forced substantially horizontal along the surface of the bed of the table, without wedging the ball downward against the table immediately after hitting the cushion,

as is the case with a sharp edged cushionvv nowv generally in use. The fiat operating strip l is very uniform in its action as its fiat surface affords a more uniform* resiliencythan strips made of wire or similar material. When the ball is driven into the operating strip l and this is done, in the controlling strips are, in the present instance, approximately yof the same width as the operating strip K, and are placed at a converging angle toward the center of the` operating strip l, as shown, so that the converging edges will be, as in the present stance, approximately three thirty-seconds of an inchA apart and away from the face of the operating strip K. lt will be noticed that the controlling strip lvl is placed'a little more nearly a vertical angle than the controlling strip L, the will be presently described.

When the'controlling strips L and M are suitably embeddedin ,the cushion, as above described, it will be seen that when the operating strip K is forced back, by a ball driven into the cushion with considerable speed, the strip l will compress the 'rubber adjacent the ends of the controlling strips L and M, thereby vtilting the strip K inward at its lower end so that the force imparted to the ball will be a little downward so as to keep it from jumping off the table. This inward tilting of the bottom of the operating strip K, when a ball is driven into the cushion with considerable speed, is due to the fact that the end of the controlling strip M yields more than the end of the controlling strip L, as the strip lvl is set at a more nearly vertical angle to the Istrip K than the strip L which is more nearly horizontal, and

therefore the strip lvl offers less resistance to the lower portion of the strip M, permitting the same to be tilted, as just described, by the end of the strip L. The operation of the strips are clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3, Fig 3 showing the position of the strips when the ball is forced with considerable force against the cushion while Fig. 2 shows the action when less force is exerted.

The ordinaryT sharp edged cushion, now generally in use, has many disadvantages when reinforced by means of metal strips and the like, for the reason that, due to its relatively sharp working face, it is neces sary to place the reinforcing strips within purpose of which` amarsi about ,ofman inch from the Working face, with the result that there is very little matel rial ofthe cushion between the .reinforcing strip and the working face, in which the ball can .embed itself for taking a proper angle'either .with or without twist, orEng Alish. The action of a reinforced Sharp edged cushion is to prevent the embedding of the ball in the cushion,with rthe result that a ball driven into the cushion at an angle of say degrees, will be thrust back at an angle of about 90 degrees instead of at an angle of 70 degrees, which is a very undesirable feature. By experiment, I have found that a cushion provided with a at faced working face, such as shown in the drawings, l will permit of the reinforcing strips being set back from the working face about again as far' as in the case of a sharp edged cushion. Thisy leaves a considerable amount of material, in addition to thev greater amount of contact surface provided by a fiat working face in which fthe `ball can embed itself for taking' the correct angles `so as not to be prematurely'acted uponby thel reinforcing strips being placed too near the working face, as is the case with a sharp edged cushion.

In other words, -it is absolutely necessary' in order to have the ball take a proper angle from the cushion, to have the reinforced strips set at such a distance back 4from the working face that the ball can become suiliciently embedded in the cushion to accomplish thisv purpose. Due to the form of the ordinary sharp edged cushion it is `necessary to put the reinforcing strips very near the working face to get increased s eed which results in false angles. 'A cus ion provided with a flat Working face permits the reinforcing strips to be set back aconsiderable` distance from the working face, thereby `leaving a considerable amount of lmaterial in which the ball can embed itself so that when the reinforced strip acts the ball will not be deflected from a true angle.

llfhile the 'invention has been described with particular reference to the details of construction the same is not to be considered as limited thereto, as many changes can bev made and still fall within the scope of the invention set forth in the following claims.

What 1claim is: l. A cushion having a flat working face for billiard tables and the like comprising in combination a flat operating strlp embedded in the cushion, fiat controlling strips also embedded in said cushion at an angle to said operating strip for controlling the actions of the same. f

2. A cushion having a Hat working face for billiard tables and the, like comprising in combination a flat working strip em `bedded in the cushion adjacent said workingy ioo face` and at right angles to the surface of In testimony whereof have signed this the table, two at'controlling strips adjaspecification in the presence of two subcent said operating strip, and arranged at scrbn-g Witnesses. I aconverging angle toward said operating MORTON L.v ADLER. 5 strip, one of said controlling strips being Witnesses:

set more nearly parallel jto the operating LEO J. MATTY, strip than the other controlling strip. PAUL H. FRANKE.

Sonics of this patent may be obtained-for ve cents each, by adressing the ommissioner of Patents,

Washington, E. C. 

